


Stolen

by chimeradragon



Series: Romulan!Kirk [1]
Category: Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: Gen, M/M, Romulan!Kirk, Species Swap, Vulcan!James Kirk, Vulcan!Kirk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-03-11
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:21:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23103154
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chimeradragon/pseuds/chimeradragon
Summary: During the mission to steal the Romulan cloaking device, Kirk actually comes across Spock and he hands off the cloaking device with the order to get it out of there while Kirk leads the Romulans on a merry chase. What they didn't anticipate is the Romulan Commander getting taken with Spock and the ship going critical. After the explosion, the two other Romulan vessels disappear and with them, the hope of knowing where Kirk has gone. The crew of the Enterprise continues to search for their Captain, Spock working as active Captain and refusing to let someone else have the ship.A year later they come across a Romulan ship with an unexpected Sub Commander. Tyberick, who looks exactly like Kirk. Post TOS S3x02 "The Enterprise Incident"
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Spock
Series: Romulan!Kirk [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1660558
Comments: 12
Kudos: 52





	Stolen

'Acting Captain Spock's log, supplemental. It has been over one standard year since we lost Captain James Kirk to the Romulans. The crew still holds out hope and I find I am reluctant to dampen their hope and spirit that we may recover our friend one day. Starfleet has made my status of Acting Captain my official title, and the Enterprise remains in the hands of the crew that was with her last year. Though we have seen no sign of Kirk, I have a strange feeling he was not killed in the explosion we witnessed when the cloaking device was stolen for Starfleet. It is my most sincere hope that we will find out what happened to the Captain someday soon. There is a memorial on Observation Deck C. Many of the crew have compiled lists and theories in that location for others to look over in the hope that we can find some pattern to the very rare sightings that have been reported. I; myself, have been over the reports and have found nothing conclusive, though this has not deterred myself or the crew from our mission.'

Spock opened his mouth to continue his log entry when the whistle of the ship's comm caught his attention. "End Log entry," he stated before tapping the button to accept the comm. "Yes?"

"Sir... we've got a Romulan vessel hailing us. Looks like it's a Bird of Prey, sir," Sulu's voice came over the comm. 

"I will be there shortly, Spock out," Spock replied as he took a moment to adjust his uniform. He felt a hint of amusement as he walked out of his quarters in a command gold shirt, a concession he made for the crew. He quickly made his way to the bridge where they were being hailed. "On screen." 

"This is the Romulan vessel Sholkaar, power down your weapons and we will not fire upon you. You have entered into Romulan space, Federation Vessel," a familiar male voice announced as the view screen came on and revealed an irritated looking, blonde, male Romulan. 

"Captain?" Chekhov asked, staring at the familiar visage of James Kirk, the very man they'd been hunting for over a year. 

"It must be," Sulu replied as he stared, mouth open hands on the controls before him. 

"Jim," Spock's voice seemed to escape him against his will as the looked at the image of his friend on the screen. 

"Jim is not a common Vulcan name, but we will accept your surrender," Jim stated, eyebrows drawn together in mild confusion before his expression relaxed once more into one of determination. 

"No. I apologize, my name is not Jim. I am acting Captain Spock, of the Federation Vessel U.S.S. Enterprise," Spock stated as he shook his shock off and straightened his posture. "We have encroached on your space because we have been looking for a lost crewmate."

"Sub-Commander Tyberick," a female voice off-screen called, it sounded rough with disuse and not quite as strong as they were used to hearing from the Romulans. "Are they surrendering?"

"We only wish to talk," Spock offered. "In the hopes of retrieving our lost crew member. Though, to be honest, I believe we have found them." 

A female Romulan appeared on the screen next to Jim, she had one eyebrow raised as her dark brown hair cascaded over her shoulders. Her face was pale with a dusting of green on her cheeks and she seemed somewhat breathless. Her eyes shone with a fierce intelligence while black veins seemed to be crawling up her neck and onto her jaw. 

"My God man... why the sudden stop? And what's this I'm hearing about a ... ghost..." McCoy's rant as he stepped onto the bridge stopped suddenly as he got a look at Jim on the screen for a moment, right before the doctor's eyes were drawn to the obviously ill Romulan. "Dear God woman! Don't you have doctors onboard for that!? Healers? Anything!? Spock, they've got Dugarian Motplague! And she," Bones pointed to the screen with a look of horror, "is in the advanced stages!" 

"You have a cure?" the female Romulan asked even as her body shivered and she started to slump towards the floor, Tyberick; Jim, caught her and helped her into the Commander's chair. 

"Of course we do!" Bones huffed. "I have a duty, Spock. If you don't let them come over, then I request permission to go to them. It's curable, but deadly if not treated."

"Indeed? Would you allow for a truce?" Spock asked, one eyebrow arched in question as he waited. 

"If you can cure Commander Tyvala, we would be in your debt," Tyberick replied with a look of concern. Another male Romulan stepped up behind Tyberick and spoke quietly in Romulan, there was a brief back and forth before Tyberick nodded and turned back to the view screen. "We will beam aboard your ship. If you are truthful and can help the Commander, we will allow you to leave Romulan space unharmed. And we will act as your escort. If you are able to provide a cure for the whole ship, we will do what we can to help you find your lost crew member."

"Bring a healer, or doctor, or whatever you call 'em," Bones replied, not taking his eyes off the image of Jim on the screen. He swallowed hard. "I'll replicate what we've got and give your man the recipe to make more. Sound fair?"

"It ... is agreeable," Tyberick replied slowly as he turned to the Commander.

"We will bring a party of four. Armed, but willing to disarm when we arrive," Tyvala added with a wave of her hand. "Five standard minutes?"

"Sure thing, sweetheart," Bones replied as the comm shut off and he felt multiple eyes on him. 

"Such decisions are normally reserved for the Captain or Acting Captain," Spock intoned seriously, but there was a hint of amusement on his face. 

"And what would you have done differently, you overly logical rule-obsessed hobgoblin?" Bones teased, one eyebrow raised high enough to give the Vulcan a run for his money. 

Spock raised an eyebrow at the rant but said nothing in response for several moments. "You make a good point doctor. But perhaps we should head to the transporter room to meet with our guests?"

Bones made an exasperated noise and threw his hands in the air before stepping into the turbolift and staring down Spock until the Vulcan followed him with a twitch of one eyebrow but no further comment. They rode the lift down to the appropriate deck in relative silence. Bones finally broke when they stepped into the hallway. 

"You and I both know that was ... Jim," Bones practically growled as he put a hand out to stop Spock for a moment. "So, what are we going to do? He didn't seem to recognize any of us when we accepted the comm."

"I believe he may be suffering from a psychological break that has made him more sympathetic to his captors," Spock offered seriously, eyes darkening with unnamed emotion. "We will need to approach the situation carefully and with logic. And we will need to endeavor to refrain from doing anything to make him think we have any ulterior motives. We must endeavor to make him feel welcome and help him to recover his lost memories." 

"And you think we can just 'logic' him back to normal?" Bones asked with another raised eyebrow worthy of a Vulcan. 

"I believe we can help him to remember who he truly is, doctor. Do you not have faith in our captain?" Spock asked as he started walking again. 

"Nah, we pull miracles too often... still... you know this isn't gonna be easy. Who knows what they've done to him?" Bones gave a world-weary sigh as he followed a half-step behind Spock. They picked up a four-man security detail just before entering the transporter room. 

A few minutes passed and the transporter activated, shimmering for a moment before four figures materialized. Three male Romulans and one female. Two of the males stood before the female commander. Jim was on one side and another on the other side while the last male stood behind the commander, his sash was a light blue color and carried a small satchel with him. 

"We thank you for your hospitality," the Commander stated as she looked directly at Spock from between her SubCommanders. Her skin was flushed and it was obvious she would have been in front of her men if they'd let her and she wasn't ill. "I am commander Tyvala. This is my First Officer, SubCommander Tyberick," she placed a hand on Jim's shoulder, "and this is SubCommander Zoltar," this time she touched the shoulder of the other male in front of her, he had dark brown hair and matching eyes, "and our Doctor Mederyn." The doctor had lighter brown hair and light brown eyes. All three males pressed a closed fist over the left side of their chest as they were mentioned and gave a brief nod. 

"Greetings," Spock replied as he held up the ta'al. "I am Acting Captain Spock, this is our Security Chief Giotto, and his second Pitcairn, and our Chief Medical Officer Doctor McCoy."

"Pleasure to meet you I'm sure," Bones grouched as he waved a dismissive hand. "Please disarm so these gorillas will let me treat my patient."

There was a snicker from the human security guards, a raised eyebrow from Spock, three mildly confused Romulans, and a faint smile from 'Tyberick' at the horrible manners Bones was displaying. Tyberick stepped forward and offered his disruptor to Pitcairn before turning and taking Tyvala and Zoltar's weapons as well. Mederyn held his hands up to show he was unarmed. 

"May I look in your bag, Doctor?" Giotto asked as Tyberick moved a step back after handing over the weapons. Tyberick looked between the Security Chief and Mederyn for a moment before giving a brief nod. The bag was handed over and Giotto passed a tricorder over it and took a brief look inside without touching anything. "Thank you," he offered with a smile as handed the bag back. "You're cleared."

"Thank you, Security Chief Giotto," Tyvala replied with a small inclination of her head. She stepped forward and almost stumbled if not for the hands of her two SubCommanders that caught her and offered her just enough stability to keep her on her feet until she'd stepped down off the pad. 

"This way," Spock offered as McCoy moved to stand next to the commander and start running his medical tricorder over her. "Doctor?"

"She can walk and be scanned. I just want to make sure my diagnosis is right," Bones replied. "Well, go on. If they're gonna do something to me a few feet isn't gonna make much difference." He huffed as he continued his scan, eyebrows moving up as he scanned the woman before him. 

Spock merely tilted his head for a moment before nodding and leading the way to Sick Bay. Tyberick seemed to be more comfortable with the group and allowed Bones behind him as he walked side-by-side with Spock, almost like it was habit. 

"Sub Commander?" Spock asked as he tilted his head in question. 

"Your missing crewmen," Tyberick began, face showing uncertainty for a moment. "What happened?"

"If I am, to be honest...." 

"And Vulcans never lie," Tyberick offered, amusement still clear on his face. 

"Yes. We were on the edge of Romulan space and hoped to get a look at a Romulan cloaking device," Spock offered slowly. "The crewman in question and I beamed aboard a ship and found a cloaking device undetected. Until we removed the device."

"Was your crewman also a Vulcan?" Tyberick asked, eyebrows raised in curiosity.

"No. He was fully human," Spock replied, voice pitched low as though he wasn't supposed to be talking about the mission. He felt a pang of emotion as he looked at Jim; Tyberick, next to him, acting much like his captain would. "We disguised him as a Romulan to get him onboard the ship. But something went wrong. My crew mate gave me the device and led the security team on a chase through the ship to give me enough time to escape with the device. There should have been no casualties..."

"But something happened?" Tyvala asked from just behind Spock and Tyberick. 

"Yes. We had and still have no idea what happened. Our removal of the cloaking device should have caused no damage to the ship. But the ship went critical. We tried to save the crew of the ship but the two other ships with it left as soon as the explosion happened. There was nothing we could do as the two remaining ships had cloaked and disappeared. We do not know if anyone was killed in the resulting explosion," Spock took a moment to take a steadying breath. "And if there were losses on the other ship... I deeply regret any actions I took that led to that outcome. As far as we knew, nothing should have caused such a thing to happen."

"I highly doubt removing the cloaking device caused the malfunction," Zoltar offered as he crossed one arm over his chest to prop his hand up to tap on his lips in thought. "Our ships are designed to be taken apart and replaced with other parts easily enough to keep our ships in top condition as quickly as possible. There must have been something else wrong with that ship."

"I remember the report about that," Tyvala added as she looked thoughtful. She paused as the group arrived in the Med Bay and she was helped up onto one of the beds. "The ship had been sabotaged by a splinter group that wanted to cause dissension. It is fortunate for those on that ship that they were made aware of unusual changes on the ship. As far as the reports go, no lives were lost. You ... may have actually saved them."

"Fascinating," Spock replied with a raised eyebrow as he took in the new information. 

"The universe works in mysterious ways, blah, blah, blah," Bones grumped as he waved Mederyn over. "Here's the sequence for the serum. You have to make sure this," he pointed to one part of the formula, "Is the perfect ratio when it's replicated or it can cause a nasty rash and severe nausea. It's survivable, and will still cure the infection, but why put a patient through something they don't have to go through, right?"

"Indeed," Mederyn concurred with a slight nod of his head as he reached into his bag to pull out his PADD to start taking notes. He even took a picture to ensure the replication process was perfect. "Thank you."

"I'm a doctor, it's what I'm supposed to do," Bones replied with a slight shrug of his shoulders but a smile played on his lips, happy to be recognized by another doctor. 

"Indeed, but not all are willing to share such information with someone they are ... not at peace with," Mederyn replied. 

"Maybe we can make peace?" Bones asked before realizing the other eyes in the room that were boring into him. He waved a dismissive hand. "For now, let's get your Commander back on her feet." Bones quickly prepared a hypo and moved towards Tyvala but was stopped by a strong hand on his arm. 

"It's not that we don't trust you, but ..." Tyberick was holding Bones' arm in a firm but careful grip. "Use it on me first."

"No," Bones replied as he pulled the hypo away from Tyberick like he'd been burned. "You ... if you are whom you seem to be, I won't risk an allergic reaction."

"What do you mean?" Tyvala asked with a look of confusion. 

Spock gave the doctor a withering look for a fraction of a second before raising an eyebrow. "Tyberick looks and sounds like our missing crewmen."

"Really?" Zoltar asked as he stepped forward, eyes darting from Spock to Bones a few times to try and ascertain if there was some kind of deception. 

"Vulcans do not lie," Spock replied. "We have not tried to deceive you. We did not wish to give you a false impression as to our reasoning behind having you come aboard. We do wish to help. Perhaps, once the cure has been administered you would be willing to submit to a few scans to see if it is merely a coincidence that you look, sound, and move like our missing friend."

Tyberick took a sharp breath but didn't say anything, his whole body was a line of tension. 

"Test the cure on me," Zoltar offered as he pulled his shirt back from his neck. 

"Sure," Bones replied with a look between determination and relief. He carefully pressed the hypo to Zoltar's neck and injected him before stepping back and waiting. Zoltar merely blinked at the doctor and raised an arched eyebrow. "Feel anything strange."

"No," Zoltar replied with a placid expression. "You may give the Commander the injection."

"Right away," Bones replied with a jaunty, slightly irreverent, tilt of his head. He gently pressed the hypo to Tyvala's neck and the hiss indicated the medicine had been delivered. "Any irritation?"

"Only with the situation," Tyvala replied before she schooled herself. "I apologize. There was no reason for me to be rude."

"Bah," Bones waved a dismissive hand as he turned to Mederyn and waggled the hypo. "It's a weird one."

Mederyn walked over and gamely offered his own neck, having seen what was in the hypo he had no objections. He did take a few notes once Bones had stepped back and picked up a tricorder. 

"Doesn't he need the cure as well?" Zoltar asked as he looked over at Tyberick. 

"I need to examine him first. If he's got allergies I need to compensate for them. Our ... crewman had a lot of allergies to various medications. And if it's not him then I can just give him the cure I gave you. We'll still replicate what we can, and you have the recipe for the rest," Bones shrugged as he passed the tricorder over Tyberick who stood still, watching as the doctor scanned him. "Now that's weird..." 

"What?" Mederyn asked as he stepped closer to look over Bones' shoulder, there was a subtle shift from Spock as he looked as well. 

"His scans are screwy," Bones replied. "Can I get a blood sample?"

Tyberick raised an eyebrow but offered his arm. He barely flinched when Bones took the sample and put it into the computer. 

"What the hell?" Bones questioned, eyebrows high on his forehead, he gestured for Mederyn to come over and look at the readouts. "You're more familiar with Romulan DNA than I am... that look right to you?"

Mederyn's eyes went wide as he looked over the results. "No. There are parts of it that look correct ... but that part... is that not human?"

"That part is Vulcan," Spock offered as he pointed to another part of the sequence. "Which is highly similar to Romulan, though there are no markers for telepathy in Romulan DNA, see there?"

"I feel like a science experiment..." Tyberick muttered as he stepped away from the three going over his scans. He gave a brief look of gratitude as Zoltar stepped away from the others to stand next to him. 

"I do not blame you," Zoltar offered as he frowned slightly at the discussion. "Strange though... the timeline matches up with when you joined us. You came almost eight standard months ago."

"You think I'm this lost crew member? A human?" Tyberick barked out a harsh laugh before he swallowed it at the serious look on the other's face. "It's ... I guess it's not entirely beyond the realm of possibility..." 

"Look here... that's Jim's sequence," Bones stated as he gestured to one part of the human DNA sequence. "And these here? Those follow the same pattern..."

"Fascinating," Mederyn murmured as he made notes on his PADD. 

"Indeed," Spock concurred before he stiffened and turned towards Tyberick and Zoltar. He moved away from the display, allowing the doctors to continue their work and discussion. "I apologize."

"For what?" Tyberick asked with an almost adorable look of confusion on his face. 

"For not including you and making you feel like a 'science experiment'. That was never my intention. Nor do I believe either doctor meant to make you feel less than a person," Spock offered. He watched as Tyberick waved a dismissive hand just before a faint tremble moved through him. "Are you ill?"

"Nah, just had a cold chill," Tyberick dismissed his own strange behavior. "It's passed, and it's not that cold in here, right?"

"It is optimal for most species to work and be comfortable. Though it is several degrees cooler than a Vulcan or Romulan ship would normally be kept," Spock offered as he watched Tyberick's face scrunch up with some unnamed emotion. Spock noted the sweat that had started to bead up on Tyberick's forehead. "You appear to be sweating."

"Yeah? Strange, Vulcans and Romulans do not sweat," Tyberick replied as another shiver swept through his body, harder than the first and he leaned against the wall to keep from falling. He shook his head, trying to clear it as his eyes lost focus. 

"Ty?" Zoltar asked, eyebrows drawn together in worry as he watched another hard shiver run through the other. 

"I'm fine..." Tyberick waved a dismissive hand just as his body shivered and shuddered before his legs gave out from under him. He would have hit the floor if not for the quick reactions of Zoltar and Spock who caught him and cradled him carefully. 

"What the devil!?" Bones snarled as he came close and briefly, ran a recorder over the fallen man. "Right, get him on one of the beds. I need to examine him further. He's showing no signs of consciousness."

Spock nodded and moved with Zoltar to carefully settle Tyberick onto one of the open beds. Spock watched as Bones moved to start his examination while Mederyn moved to the other side and moved Zoltar out of his way without thought or comment. 

"He's sweating all right," Bones noted as he carefully moved his tricorder over Tyberick and snagged a clean cloth nearby to mop the slowly beading moisture away. "This is very strange indeed."

"The changes he's been through would make it is difficult for Tyberick to sweat," Mederyn noted with a slight tilt of his head as he looked over his readings. He ran his own scanner of the unconscious male. "This... this doesn't make any sense. His hormone levels are spiking..." 

Bones almost took the tricorder from Mederyn's hands as he pulled it close to look at the readings and compared them to his own. He frowned before pulling up a different set of readings and his frown deepened. 

"Doctor?" Spock asked head tilted slightly as he sensed there was more to the Doctor's sudden stiffness. "Am I correct in assuming that you have found some correlation that is distressing you?" 

"Yeah, you could say that," Bones grouched. 

"Please enlighten us, Doctor," Spock replied when he realized the other wasn't going to come right out and talk about his findings and theories. 

"These scans are yours ... from two years ago," Bones replied as he pointed to scans with slight differences, but a clear parallel in the spikes and dips. "You remember what happened during that time?" 

Spock's whole body went rigid and his eyes widened slightly as he looked between the doctor and Jim several times. "You must be mistaken." 

"I wish to hell I was!" Bones growled again. "So we have to figure something out. Quickly if these levels are any indication we only had a little bit of time left when you ..." 

"What is it?" Mederyn demanded. "He's my patient and my friend. I have a right to know how to help him. I will not stand by and let someone suffer if I can avoid it."

"It is a difficult thing to ask a Vulcan to speak about," Spock started slowly. 

"Pon Farr?" Mederyn asked with a look of dawning horror as his face paled with the realization. "But Romulans don't go through Pon Farr... At least not the same as Vulcans. It's a time of Mating but not so violent or dangerous." 

"It would seem whatever was done to him has made him Vulcan enough to experience it," Bones replied with a world-weary sigh as he slumped into a nearby chair and rubbed his forehead. "It's ... it should be impossible. But there's something there that's making his hormone levels jump, and fall. If it keeps up... his body will give out. Just like any Vulcan's would under the same conditions." 

"He'll burn to death in the Plak Tow," Tyvala whispered, eyes wide in shock at the very idea they could lose Tyberick to this biological urge they knew little about. "As far as I know he has no Bonded..." 

"Why would he?" Bones scoffed hotly, irritation showing clearly on his face, but there was an underlying sense of desperation and worry in his eyes. "Up until he left us he was human enough. No need for a Bondmate at that point." 

"Regardless, he will need one now," Spock countered. "As you said, if his levels continue to spike as they have been, he will die. We cannot allow that to happen." 

"How do we get a Bondmate for him? He's unconscious, and the choice should be his," Zoltar asked. 

"Or he will need to fight to the death. He will not have the time to master the kind of meditation needed to be able to quench the fires of this Pon Farr," Spock replied with a look of pain on his face. There was silence in the room for several moments while each person tried to think of some way to save Jim/Tyberick from the biological imperative that was threatening his life. "Doctor, do you think you could perform the same trick on him as you did with me?"

Bones looked up, face full of confusion for several moments before a light seemed to come on in his mind. "That might work! If we don't find someone he can Bond with. I'd rather leave the neural-paralyzers for a last resort."

"Neural-paralyzers!?" Tyvala asked, eyes wide with shock and worry. 

"The doctor and Jim attended my first Pon Farr when my betrothed decided to mate another. She was very ... logical about the situation and chose Jim as her champion in the hopes that I would kill him and then not want her, or he would kill me, and he would not want her. By doing so she would have been free to choose another. The Doctor dosed Jim with a neural-paralyzer under the guise of giving him tri-ox and when it kicked in it seemed as though I had killed him. The shock of killing my captain ..." Spock paused as he swallowed hard, not comfortable with talking about the incident but knowing that it might be the difference between life and death for his friend. "My friend. The thought that I had been responsible for his death broke me from the Plak Tow and I was able to regain myself. My Blood Fever was satisfied. I left my betrothed and came back to the ship. Lucky for me Jim had awoken from the paralyzer and was able to assuage my fear that I had killed him." 

"So you want to fight him and simulate death in his opponent so that he will hopefully snap out of the Blood Fever?" Zoltar asked, eyebrows drawn together. 

"No, but it is a plan as a last resort," Spock replied with a look that spoke volumes as his eyes grew slightly distant as he thought over what options they might have. 

There was a soft noise from Jim/Tyberick as he thrashed his head on the bed weakly, eyes still closed but his brows were drawn tightly together. The sheen of sweat on his forehead beaded up once more and a small trickle escaped to run from his temple into his hair. 

"Ty?" Zoltar called softly, voice a little uncertain. He didn't look at the others in the room almost like he'd forgotten there was anyone else in the room with him. He reached out a hand, gently pressed to the other's fully clothed shoulder. There was a shiver as Tyberick's nostrils flared for a moment and he made a quiet noise of distress in the back of his throat. "Tyberick? Are you okay?"

Tyberick's head thrashed on the bed again and his breathing picked up. 

"I believe we should back away from him," Spock offered as he took a step back himself. "We do not want to overwhelm him when he awakens. If he is experiencing a Pon Farr he may perceive too many people as a challenge. Only one of us should be near him at a time." 

"Sound advice," Tyvala commented with a nod of her head as she scooted back on the bed she was still seated on. Mederyn and Bones also took a step back as Tyberik's eyes fluttered open slowly. Hazy hazel searched the room, darting from one person to another as his breathing heaved from his lungs and he sat up with a look between panic and aggression. The whole room went still as Tyberick's eyes landed on the hand on his shoulder. He frowned slightly and it was clear his mind was somewhere else as he spoke something in several languages. 

"I have no idea what he just said," Zoltar stated, eyes wide as he refrained from moving. "I think there was some Romulan and Vulcan in there." 

"I recognized some of that," Bones offered almost offhandedly. He gave a rueful smile. "Part of that was 'remove your hand before I remove it from you' ... in Klingon. Heard that in many bars with him. Too many bars." 

Spock allowed a bit of a smile come to his face at the anecdote. "I know part of the Vulcan was 'wrong Bond'. Which I would take those two phrases to mean you should back away from him, Zoltar."

Zoltar nodded slowly as he took his hand back and slowly backed up, feeling like prey as Tyberick's eyes followed him closely. "My apologies." 

"I do not think he is in his right mind enough to truly understand your sentiment, but we will notify him when he is himself again," Spock offered as he watched Zoltar move all the way to the other side of the room until the SubCommander's back hit the wall and he froze, not wanting to upset his friend. Zoltar broke their gaze and looked down and away, instinctively realizing that Tyberick saw the continued eye contact as a challenge. 

"I will wait out in the hall," Zoltar offered as he nodded to one of the guards and stepped into the hall. The guard looked to Spock who nodded. 

"Perhaps those not offering themselves should leave the MedBay," Spock stated loud enough for the other guards to hear. There were a few moments of hesitation before all three remaining guards left the room, presumably to stand just outside. 

Mederyn took a hesitant step forward, tricorder in hand and Tyberick's head snapped around to the sound and he zeroed in on the doctor. Tyberick's head tilted slightly as he narrowed his gaze on the medical device for a moment before looking back up, his mind was clearly clouded by the fever the whole room could see spiking on the monitor behind Tyberick. "I just want to scan you," Mederyn offered as he took another hesitant half step forward, eyes not on Tyberick's but somewhere on his shoulder. 

Tyberick let out another string of words, several languages again, before he shook his head and looked to the others in the room. 

Mederyn stepped back and looked to Bones with a look of near despair on his face. "Perhaps you can scan him to make sure he's not damaged?" 

"I don't think he's letting anyone near him at the moment," Bones offered, hand raised to pat Mederyn on the shoulder but froze in midair as he noted the way Tyberick's gaze followed the moment before he made another sound of rejection. "I caught that one. Bajoran ... 'go away' but not in such nice terms. Alright, Mederyn, how about we check out the Mess Hall while they get this figured out?" 

Mederyn gave a longing look back at Tyberick, feeling lost as a doctor that he couldn't help his patient but allowed himself to be led from the room.

"I guess that leaves me," Tyvala stated as she stood on slightly shaky legs before she managed to compose herself again. She straightened her uniform and smoothed her hair out as she took a step closer, eyes on Tyberick's with confidence it was clear she didn't entirely feel. Spock felt his respect for her rise. 

Tyberick let Tyvala get close and his nostrils flared again before he practically snarled and rolled off the bed, eyes dilated and he pushed the Commander away from him as sweat dripped from his hairline. He panted as he looked around the room like a cornered animal when his eyes landed on Spock. The Vulcan felt the heat and weight of that gaze as Tyberick ignored the Commander and took three quick steps towards Spock, hands outstretched and slammed the other into the wall. Tyvala started to move to help Spock when he held up a hand to forestall her. 

"He is not attempting to harm me," Spock stated, voice low and even. He turned from Tyvala to look Tyberick in the eye before tilting his head slightly and noted the way Tyberick seemed to follow him. "I believe I will need a clear path to ... my quarters. He is not going to want interference. His selection is a sound one, we have known each other for many years and shared several mind melds." 

"Good luck," Tyvala said with a slightly wistful sigh. "He's very handsome."

"He also has a pure heart," Spock added as he briefly looked over at the Romulan Commander. "I would advise leaving now. I can feel the heat rising in him, and his mind is reaching out for a Bond. I do not think he would accept any others in his space at the moment." 

Tyberick leaned in close and buried his nose in Spock's throat before taking a slow, shuddering breath. There was a soft sigh and another string of mismatched languages. 

"He said he has found his Intended Bonded," Spock offered with a look that was slightly wistful mixed with happiness. "I will not allow harm to come to him. Thank you. For bringing him back to us." 

"He's a good officer, and a good friend," Tyvala sighed softly, one hand on her side as her heart fluttered. "I am glad he has such good friends they would spend so much time looking for him when he goes missing. Many would have given up long before now."

"I knew he was not dead," Spock replied as he let a hand reach up to softly grip Tyberick's shoulder. "We do have a Bond already. He is ... t'hy'la." 

Tyvala's eyes went wide for a moment before a smile lit her face. "Indeed. Take care, perhaps we shall talk more when this is over."

Spock didn't say anything further as he watched the woman leave the MedBay. He'd turned back to Tyberick and allowed his attention to be drawn to the fevered man. There was an insistence in the other's movements, and an urgency to be close, but nothing more than that at the moment. It was like the fires had been banked now that Tyberick had found his intended. 

"Mine," Tyberick murmured in Standard, breathing finally slowed to a normal level and heartbeat closer to what it had been when he'd been first brought into the MedBay. Much higher than a human's would be, but slower than a Vulcan. There was some more nuzzling and then Tyberick tucked his head under Spock's chin, cheek on the taller man's chest with a contented sigh. Spock let his arms slowly wrap around the other male, fingers splayed wide over the other's back. 

"Yours, as you are mine," Spock replied softly, tone full of tenderness. He felt another nuzzle against his chest and a sigh. "Jim, are you with me?" 

Tyberick/Jim looked up at him, confusion in his slowly clearing eyes. The fever had died down a bit and he was looking more present. "Jim...? That's the name of your lost crew mate, right?" 

Spock felt a pang of regret and some other emotion he didn't want to name as he swallowed down the instinctive response. "I apologize, Tyberick. You are correct, our lost crew member's name is Jim. I did not mean to offend you."

Tyberick frowned and shook his head. "It's strange, but both names feel right. That's strange, isn't it?" 

"It is," Spock replied with a soft, tiny upturn of his lips. "We can worry about such things later. You are somewhat unwell."

"Somewhat?" Tyberick parroted with a raised eyebrow. 

"You are experiencing Pon Farr. Your body is demanding you go through the Time of Mating," Spock offered with only a little hesitation. He still felt the mild horror when speaking about such a taboo subject, but he knew it was the right thing to do. The thing he had to do for Jim... Tyberick. "Your hormones and body temperature will fluctuate wildly unless you find a Mate to slake the Plak Tow during the Pon Farr. Or you would have to participate in ritual combat. To the Death." 

"I think I like the idea of Mating much better," Tyberick replied with a soft chuckle. "And you're ... you're mine, right?" 

Spock nodded solemnly. "Indeed. As you are mine." 

"So, what are we supposed to do?" Tyberick asked, tone uncertain as his eyes searched Spock's face for the answers. 

"I would think it is rather obvious what we are supposed to do at this point, is it not?" Spock asked with a raised eyebrow and only the faintest dusting of green on his cheeks. "And to be clear ... Vulcans Mate for life. When it comes to Pon Farr there is a mental link that is created between the Pair." 

Tyberick paused for a moment and bit his lip as his body trembled again. His options were limited, but it felt right to him. To choose Spock when his mind told him that he barely met the other, yet he'd known since the communication on the bridge that he needed to be with this person. They were destined to meet and care for each other. To help one another. He looked over Spock again, trying to be objective and not completely at the mercy of his hormones. The Vulcan before him was a fine specimen. Tall, strong, and lean, without looking fragile. Spock had to be intelligent and dedicated to have reached a point he was First Officer and currently Acting Captain on one of the best vessels in Star Fleet. He was patient, and there had to be some kindness for the way he treated and spoke to Tyberick's crew before they had come over. And the way they'd been treated since they arrived help reinforce that idea. 

"Okay," Tyberick said after several moments of silence as he looked up at Spock, hazel catching warm brown. "I have a feeling this," he gestured between the two of them, "Is going to be a great relationship. Not perfect! Nothing in life is, but great all the same." 

"I believe you are correct," Spock replied as he held out his right hand with the first two fingers extended. "T'hy'la." 

Tyberick smiled back as he touched his own fingers to Spock's and felt a pleasant shiver run through his body. 

END (?)


End file.
